Double Espresso 13 Station Parade, Balham High Road SW12 9AZ London
Reviewed on Tuesday 9 June 2009
Double Espresso
Inside the restaurant
The first things you see when you enter in Double Espresso are the cakes in the refrigerated display. After all this place is also a coffee place and it can be nice to sit outside on the large sidewalk. The restaurant is not very big. It is dominated by a large counter and on top of it there is a TV. The atmosphere is very relaxed: I like it. It looks as though the place is family owned.
As starters we ordered the Involtini Di Prosciutta (melted mozzarella cheese wrapped in slices of parma ham – £6) which was amongst the specials of the day, and a Formaggio Di Capra Grigliato (grilled goat’s cheese on toasted bread and mixed grilled veg – £5.50). They were followed by two pizzas: a pizza Double Espresso (made of mozzarella, tomato, prawns, basil, blue cheese and garlic – £8.50) and a pizza Fiorentina (£7.20). The red wine was a Merlot Malbec 2007 from Distant Land in New Zealand (£20) which was quite enjoyable.
The melted mozzarella were quite good, and the slices of parma ham were slightly crispy and fortunately not too dry. The salad was a good addition to them. It was “only” three pieces but they were quite filling so you are warned! The goat cheese could just have used a little extra virgin olive oil to set it off. As it was, it was just a little bland.
The pizzas were made of an extremely thin base. We like that. From where we were we could see the pizzaiolo preparing them. He was nice enough to invite us to take a photo closer when he noticed we were taking photos As it was their “home” pizza I chose the Double Espresso. I have to say I was not too sure about the mix between prawns and blue cheese but hey, only one way to find out! Actually it was a pretty good pizza. The prawns were big enough to have a taste and the blue cheese was not too strong. I wished the garlic was stronger but I am a garlic fan. The Fiorentina was good, with the egg perfectly cooked: still liquid but not running. It lacked some flavour though. We finished the meal with two Limoncello.
Involtini Di Prosciutta
Formaggio Di Capra Grigliato
Overview of the two starters. The bottle of red wine was a NZ Merlot Malbec 2007 from Distant Land.
Preparing the pizza!
Pizza Double Espresso "raw"
On its way to the oven! Nice pizzaiolo!
Cooked pizza Double Espresso
Pizza Fiorentina
Limoncello
Cost and conclusion: it was just under £60 with service charge included. Considering we had two starters, two pizzas, a bottle of wine that was not cheap and two Limoncello (served wonderfully cold) it is good value for money. The food was good, the service friendly: it is a very decent option if you are in the area, and it is much better than Cattle Grid located on the other side of Balham train station.
Restaurant Vimar 70 Place Jourdan Etterbeek 1040 Brussels Tél. : 02.231.09.49
Reviewed on Monday 8 June 2009
Restaurant Vimar
The restaurant Vimar, which specialises in fish, is located Place Jourdan not far from the European Commission. Inside the atmosphere is quite nice with a high ceilling and salmon pastel coloured walls with a touch of green. It feels cosy.
Inside the Vimar
Another view
They do have a carte, but the weekly updated blackboard is where they list specials and their menu. I took 2 courses plus coffee for 32 euros (not cheap – but nothing close to the Commission is cheap). On top of that, I had some wine and a dessert.
The blackboard with the suggestions
I chose les asperges (asparagus) à la flamande as first course followed by le filet de plie (plaice) meunière beurre aux herbes fraîches. As dessert I had a strawberries/white cheese that wasn’t on the carte (but that the waiter suggested). The asparagus was pretty good nice and tender, not at all stringy – very well cooked, and arrived piping hot. It was nicely seasoned too, nothing too overpowering. The plaice was OK… It was nicely cooked and seasoned. But it is a difficult fish that has a tendancy to be quite soft – and so it was in this case. I’m not sure if cooking it just a little longer would have helped to make it a bit more firm, but if it is the case, I with they had! With that small improvement, it would have been excellent. The house wine was a pleasant red. The dessert was fantastic! The strawberries were beautifully ripe and firm, very sweet, and perfectly accompanied by the white cheese. Nothing stingy about the portion either. Coffee was good – no complaints there. They did provide cream, but the coffee was neither burnt nor bitter, so it wasn’t needed.
Les asperges à la flamande
Filet de plie meunière beurre aux herbes fraîches
The strawberries dessert
Cost and conclusion: it was 44.10 euros, with service charge included in price so nothing else added which is nice. 32 euros for the starter, main course and coffee, 6.50 euros for the dessert and 5.60 euros for the wine. The meal was very good. At 44.10 for one, it is not exactly cheap but its not outrageous by Brussels standards either. As I’ve found on previous occassions, this restaurant is not fast so it is perhaps not the best place when you only have a limited amount of time for lunch. But if you are able to take your time, it is a step above others in this vicinity.
Restaurant Les Crustacés 8 Quai aux Briques 1000 Brussels Belgium Tél. : 02.511.56.44
Reviewed on Saturday 6 June 2009
Les Crustacés (crustaceans) is a restaurant specialised since 1963 into fish dishes, mussels, seafood platters and lobsters. It is still possible to eat meat but then why would you go there? The place is in an old house made in bricks and inside the design is cosy. The little dining rooms are quite pleasant. It is located near Ste Catherine Church and in the former Marché aux poissons (fish market) area, a place well known for its seafood. We chose this restaurant as it looked a bit less touristic than some of its neighbours. Their menu is quite large with many set menus: a €23 3 course menu with fish or meat, a 3 course lobster menu starting at €33, a tasting menu at €38 with aperitif and coffee included and a €47 menu with aperitif, vines and coffee included. There is an excellent 3 course lunch deal at €12 and of course you can choose à la carte as well. There were three of us for dinner: I took a menu, offering 3 courses for €33. The others chose entrée and main course a la carte. Our starters were Moules gratinees (€12), cocktail crevette (€15), and Coquille St Jacques gratinée (included in menu price). The Coquille St Jacques was exactly as expected, and very good – it just could have been a little larger (only two scallops in there!). The moules gratinees was likewise reported to be very good and well cooked. The cocktail crevette was not really as expected – it was a salad with crevettes (small shrimps) but reported to be surprisingly good. As main courses we had a half lobster (homard) in butter sauce (included in menu), and two soles meunières (butter fried sole, €25 each). All were very tasty, though perhaps the lobster just a touch overcooked. This was all washed down with a very pleasant bottle of blanc de blanc (white wine, €20), and a bottle of mineral water (€7!!). Having taken a menu, I was the only one with dessert. I chose vanilla icecream with red fruit coulis. This turned out to be a mix of strawberries, plums and actually a passionfruit sauce – fine, since I like passionfruit and it was very good (but again, not exactly what I was expecting). We ended the meal with two double espressos and a thé infusion (€4 each). All very good – no weak or burnt coffee here. Since it was a business dinner I did not take photos of everyone’s dish – as you can understand 😉
Coquille St-Jacques gratinée au fromage
Moules gratinées au fromage
½ Homard Grillé beurre
Glace Vanille et son Coulis de Fruits Rouges
Cost and conclusion: the full bill was €149 service charge included in the price meals. The itemised bill is 2 double espresso (€4 each), 1 infusion (thé – €4 ), 1 bottle of blanc de blanc (€20), 1 litre of mineral still water (€7 !), 1 moules gratinees (€12), 1 cocktail crevette (€15), 2 sole meuniere (€25 each) and the €33 menu. Not too bad for three people in Brussels, including wine! The price for the bottle of water was outrageous though!
The Ship Tavern 12 Gate St, Holborn London WC2A 3HP
Reviewed on Thursday 4 June 2009
The Ship Tavern in Holborn
The Ship Tavern is a traditional pub, located in Holborn not far from the tube station. They have been there since 1549! Inside it is small, dark but cosy. They have more room upstairs in case it gets really busy. It is usually quiet during the weekend but during the week go early in the evening for securing a table. This is the third time we went there and we have been quite happy the previous time. Will it be the case again?
We ordered the crisp pork belly (again! Third time now!) served with buttered mash potato, green beans, port gravy & spiced apple sauce (£9.95) and the steak & real ale pie made with Bombardier ale topped with puff pastry (£9.95) for trying something new. We had two Budweiser beers too. As at any pub you order your food at the counter and pay there in advance. Then you get a big wooden spoon with a number so they know who to serve. The staff were friendly and polite as usual.
The steak & real ale pie was great. Of course it is not exactly what we can call a light meal but the puff pastry was light and good, providing a nice contrast to the meat which was also good, with some ale flavour which reminded me of the Carbonnade flamande you can get in Belgium. The fries were crispy and good. I prefer when they are thinner but at least they were not huge and undercooked as it happens often in the UK. The crisp pork belly tasted good, was quite large but not warm enough unfortunately. Also it wasn’t as crispy as previous (which is probably due to the same problem – not cooked long enough the second time). It was better the previous times we went there, especially the first time. Maybe we arrived there too early this time?
Nice cosy interior, good beer!
The glass with the spoon we got after ordering
The counter. Nice ceiling.
The TV for watching sport
The crisp pork belly
Steak & real ale pie
Overview of the table with the two meals
Cost and conclusion: for less than £30 I think this place is a good value for money especially considering the location. Pity for the pork belly this time though and hopefully it was just an accident. You can read previous reviews of the Ship Tavern here (12 April 2009) and here (3 May 2009).
Pizza Metro Traditional Neapolitan Restaurant 64 Battersea Rise London SW11 1EQ
Reviewed on Tuesday 2 June 2009
Pizza Metro
Pizza Metro is apparently the first restaurant in London to cook their metre long pizzas in a wood burning oven. That was in 1993. We did not order a metre pizza even if it would have been fun taking a photo of it. For a half metre rectangular pizza the price is the same as two round pizzas so we prefered the classical rounded way. We saw some tables getting a metre pizza and it is quite impressive because it is put on a raised baking tray that is at eye level. Not too convenient for chatting across the table but fun to watch! The atmosphere is very Italian with a map of Italy, giant bottles of wine next to the windows, frypans attached to the walls. Several customers were also Italians. A good sign
We ordered two pizzas: the Ripieno which is a kind of calzone pizza with ricotta, parmesan, ham, basil, Napoli salame, tomatoes, and mozzarella (£9.95) and the Diego’s with mozzarella, buffalo ricotta, Napoli salame, rocket, basil, olive oil and parmesan (£9.95). We had a bottle of red wine Angelo Rosso Sicilia 2007 (£16). The Diego’s had an extremely thin base that was nicely crispy on the edges. I really enjoy thin base pizzas. The toppings were excellent too and the creamy buffalo ricotta was a great touch to the pizza. I was a little surprised my pizza was precut but it was fine. I guess it is easier when kids eat at the restaurant. The Ripieno (not precut of course) was good, and very hot due to the folding design of that pizza. The tomato sauce used in the pizzas had a good “real tomato” taste. The pizza base had a nice flavour, and the mix of ingredients in the pizza was well balanced (nothing nasty, like too salty ham, for example). It was just a little ‘different’ with the buffalo ricotta. I liked that there was also mozarella as I find just ricotta in a calzone to be a bit bland. The pizza base could have been a bit crispier, but it wasn’t soggy either. The spicy oil could also have been spicier. As desserts we had a chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream and a vanilla panna cotta. The waiter came with a plate of desserts and these were the ones we chose. The chocolate cake was nice, not too sweet at all, and moist in the centre, crispy on the outside. The vanilla panna cotta was great: light enough, not too sweet and with some crumbles on top that were a good addition.
Entertaining design
At the right in the back there is the food burning oven
Huge bottles by the windows
Pizza Ripieno
Pizza Diego's
The two pizzas
The chilli oil!
Detailed view of the pizza Ripieno
Detailed view of the pizza Diego's
Vanilla panna cotta
Chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream
Cost and conclusion: the total bill was £53.89. It already included the service charge, something I dislike since it should be up to the client to decide on. That said, the service was excellent (friendly and paying attention) so they deserved it. The bill was a little on the expensive side but at least the lunch was good. While we found the pizzas better than at Buona Sera located 5 minutes walk away we still prefer the pizzas at Franco Manca (in Brixton) and at Rustica (in Richmond).
